This invention relates to a surgical instrument assembly and apparatus. This invention also relates to an associated surgical method. More particularly, this invention relates to a method, apparatus and instrument for use in laparoscopic surgery.
In conventional laparascopic techniques, a small hollow needle with a safety tip is first inserted through the abdominal wall of a patient. A gas, usually carbon dioxide, is then injected through the needle to pressurize the abdominal cavity and distend the abdominal wall. Surgical instruments are typically introduced into the inflated abdominal cavity through additional apertures formed in the abdominal wall.
Problems with this conventional pneumoperitoneum method include the need for special pumps, pressure gauges and needles and the possiblity of gas seeping into the blood. In addition, the insufflation gas periodically seeps out of the abdominal cavity, whereupon the abdominal wall falls and interrupts the surgery.